Boston requires short-term rentals to register with the city, at $200 per year for a whole-unit Home Share or an Owner-Adjacent unit and $25 for a Limited Share room. Limited Share and Home Share units are the owner-operator's primary residence. A city budget page reports a 5.7% state excise on room occupancy in addition to the local tax.
Facts
| Field | Value | Stated by |
|---|---|---|
| Place | Boston | - |
| State | MA | - |
| Jurisdiction type | city | - |
| Permit required | Yes | Source 1 |
| Permit name | Short-Term Rental registration | - |
| Permit fee (USD) | $200 | Source 1 |
| Fee notes | Per year: Home Share (whole unit) $200, Owner-Adjacent $200, Limited Share (room) $25. | - |
| Renewal period | annual | Source 1 |
| Non-owner-occupied rental allowed | unknown | - |
| Caps and zoning limits | Three unit types only (Limited Share, Home Share, Owner-Adjacent). Limited Share and Home Share units are the owner-operator's primary residence; the unit is within a property classified as residential use. | Source 1 |
| Annual night cap | unknown | - |
| Local lodging tax | unknown | - |
| State lodging tax | 5.7% | Source 2 |
| Platform collects tax | unknown | - |
| Tax notes | 5.7% is the state excise as reported on a City of Boston budget page, which also mentions a 2.75% convention center fee; the local rate on its own is not stated there and no state revenue page could be read. | - |
| Penalties | unknown | - |
| Fields not confirmed | Non-owner-occupied rental allowed; Annual night cap; Local lodging tax; Platform collects tax; Penalties | - |
| Last checked | 2026-10-07 | - |
| Dataset row id | boston-ma | - |
"unknown" means the value was not found on the official pages read on the check date, not that no such rule exists. "Stated by" points to the numbered source below.
Sources
- City of Boston Inspectional Services: Short-Term Rentals
- City of Boston Budget: FY26 Local Revenue. Published on www.boston.gov. Address: https://www.boston.gov/departments/budget/fy26-local-revenue
At most one official page per place is linked; every other source is cited as text with its full address.
Sources last checked: 2026-10-07